South Dakota Court Case Lookup
A court case is a legal action brought before a court by one party to resolve a dispute involving another party (individuals or organizations). Depending on the type of case, the verdict passed by either the judge presiding over the case or the jury usually determines the case's outcome.
In South Dakota, there are two types of court cases: civil court cases and criminal court cases. The state court system at various levels handles these cases. The three principal levels of the South Dakota court system are the magistrate, circuit, and supreme court. Magistrate courts is the state's lowest level of court, which adjudicate simple disputes like traffic citations. Magistrate courts also assist circuit courts in handling misdemeanor criminal cases and minor civil actions.
In South Dakota, circuit courts are the state trial courts with general jurisdiction over most criminal and civil cases. The word "circuit" court comes from how judges used to travel between towns on horses to hear cases in the past. This was called "Riding the circuit". South Dakota is divided into seven circuits, each with its own circuit court.
The state's highest court, the supreme court of South Dakota, is in charge of appellate proceedings. For instance, a litigant may "appeal" a lower court’s verdict to the state supreme court, if they are dissatisfied with the judgment the court issued.
Interested persons can conduct South Dakota court case lookups in one of two ways; online or in person. Inquirers can use the Public Access Record Search (PARS) portal to look up criminal court case records and court protection orders online.
PARS is part of South Dakota’s online state-wide court case records search program. Criminal case records from 1989 to the present are available online through PARS, unless confidential or sealed. Active money judgments for the past 20 years and inactive money judgments from April 19, 2004, to the present, are also available through the PARS. Meanwhile, inquirers can look up civil money judgments online strictly through the South Dakota UJS Civil Judgment Query portal.
To look up court cases through PARS, record seekers can either register for a PARS account, log in with a per existing account details, or search as a guest. Similarly, inquirers are required to sign in or register an account to use the state UJS Civil Judgment Query portal. Record seekers would need to provide the last name and date of birth of any of the case’s parties to conduct a search on PARS. Note that PARS is not a free service, and users are charged a $20.00 fee per each search performed.
A good alternative to PARS is the South Dakota eCourt online access portal. The state eCourt portal provides summaries of information about court case records that are open to the public in South Dakota. It is important to note that certain cases may not available on the eCourt portal pursuant to federal and state statutes or by court order. Similar to other online case lookup portals in South Dakota, inquirers are required to register for an account or log in to use the eCourt portal. Furthermore, inquirers would need to provide the name of the case’s party and case number to conduct to look up cases on the eCourt portal.
Record seekers can also query the clerk of court office of the courthouse where the case was heard to look up court case records. Inquirers can find the contact information and addresses of every court clerk in South Dakota through the state’s Unified Judicial System Clerk of Courts directory. Alternatively, record seekers can use the South Dakota court directory to find the addresses and contact information of courthouses in the state. At the courthouse, clerks typically supply record seekers with court case lookup request forms to fill with information about the case they wish to look up. court houses may also have public terminals inquirers can use to lookup up court cases themselves.
Are Court Cases Public Record in South Dakota?
Per the South Dakota Sunshine Law and the Unified Judicial System Court Records Rule (UJSCRR), the general public can access public records maintained by state government agencies. In South Dakota, courts are regarded as government agencies. Therefore, interested parties have access to court case records they maintain. These consist of court case filings and verdicts. However, the UJSCRR's §15-15A-7 exempts certain court case documents and information from public access. Examples include juvenile court case records, civil case filing statements, and court case records that have been designated confidential by federal or state laws.
Can I Get South Dakota Court Case Documents Online?
Yes, provided the court case documents are not confidential or sealed. Interested persons can use South Dakota Public Access Record Search (PARS) and eCourt portal to access some court case documents online. Record seekers can also access court case documents electronically at the courthouse where the case was heard through public terminals.
How to Conduct a South Dakota Court Case Search by Name
Members of the public who wish to conduct a South Dakota court case search by name can use the eCourt portal provided by the state’s Unified Judicial System. On the portal, inquirers can search for a South Dakota court case by providing the case’s party's first name, last name, or a combination of both names. Because the eCourt portal is a statewide search portal, searching for a court case by name can yield many results. In such cases, the inquirer can specify the county where the case was heard or provide the court case number.
Interested persons can also query the clerk’s office of the courthouse where the case in question was heard to conduct a court case search by name. If the inquirer resides in South Dakota, they can visit the courthouse in person to conduct a court case search by name during regular business hours. Most courthouses in South Dakota also have public terminals interested persons can use to conduct court case searches by name electronically.
What is a Court Case Number?
A court case number is a unique string of characters assigned to a court case filled in a courthouse. A court case number is used as an identifier to differentiate court cases within a particular court system from each other as they go through the court system. As a result, official court documents of court cases are tagged with their respective court case number for ease of identification and tracking. In South Dakota, a court case number is derived from a combination of details about a case. These include the year the case was filed, court type, case type, and the case judge's or judicial officer’s initials.
How to Conduct a Case Number Search in South Dakota
In South Dakota, interested parties can conduct a case number search by visiting state's courthouses. The court clerk would provide enquirers with a request form at the courthouse that they can fill out with a court case number and submit to search for records and information about a case. If the case number is not known, the inquirer may supply the clerk of court with the name of the case's party instead. For requested court case searches, the clerk of courts may levy a fee.
Additionally, certain South Dakota courthouses offer free public terminals that visitors can utilize to search court case numbers. Alternatively, if a searcher cannot visit a courthouse in person, they can use the eCourt portal offered by the state's Unified Judicial System to conduct searches remotely. A search can be carried out by entering a court case number and case party name on the eCourt portal.
How to Remove Court Cases From Public Record in South Dakota
In South Dakota, defendants can request an order of expungement from the court to have their court cases removed from public records. According to South Dakota Code § 23A-3-30, a court may issue an order of expungement of a court case if there is convincing evidence that the order will advance the interests of justice and the public.
Additionally, certain court cases are eligible for automatic expungement under SDC § 23A-3-34. These include court cases where the highest charged offense was a petty offense, a Class 2 misdemeanor, or a municipal ordinance violation. According to this clause, these types of court cases are automatically removed from the defendant's public record after five (5) years. Provided the defendant has complied with all court-ordered conditions relevant to the case and has not received any further convictions during the five-year period. However, the case records are still accessible by court personnel and pursuant to a court order and can be used to enhance a defendant's prosecution for subsequent offenses.
In relation to court cases, SDC § 23A-3-26 defines expungement (also known as "expunction") as the sealing of all records on file within any court. Expungement does not mean the destruction of records. Hence, determined individuals as well as government agencies may still be able to access these records. Nevertheless, in accordance with SDC § 23A-3-32, a defendant who has had an expungement order entered their court case and cannot be charged with perjury or providing false information for neglecting to acknowledge specifics regarding the case in question.
How to Check a Court Case Status in South Dakota
Interested parties can use the South Dakota Unified Judicial System eCourt portal to look up the status of court cases. The docket entries for court cases that are open to the public, along with the outcome and verdict rendered in these cases, are available on the eCourt portal. The only search criteria required to look up court cases on the eCourt portal are the party names and the case numbers.
Alternatively, inquirers can also contact or visit the appropriate Clerk of Court office to enquire about the status of relevant court cases.
How to Find Supreme Court Decisions in South Dakota
According to the state's Sunshine Law, decisions of the supreme court in South Dakota are made public. As a result, the general public has a legal right to view state supreme court decisions. Decisions issued by the South Dakota Supreme Court are officially published in bound volumes of the North Western Reporter.
Interested persons can also find state supreme court decisions by inspecting the case’s slip opinions. Slip opinions of South Dakota supreme court cases are posted on the opinions tab found on the supreme court page of the state Unified Judicial System website. Although these slip options are subject to revisions and correction, they are valuable resources that can be inspected to find supreme court decisions. Nevertheless, decisions of supreme court cases from 1996 to the present are available on the supreme court page.
Readers are urged to notify the state supreme court clerk of any typographical or other errors found on slip options on the supreme court page. Reports should be sent to the clerk at SCClerkBriefs@ujs.state.sd.us or 500 East Capitol Avenue, Pierre, SD, 57501. Doing this ensures that appropriate corrections are made before the official options are published.
What Percentage of Court Cases Go to Trial in South Dakota?
Although many cases are filed in circuit courts (trial courts) across South Dakota each fiscal year, only a small percentage of cases, by comparison, actually go to trial.
An annual report on the workload of the state's Unified Judicial System is released by South Dakota's Office of the State Court Administrator each year. The South Dakota court system received a total of 199,833 civil and criminal cases, according to the 2021 annual report. The report, however, only provided information on the number of criminal court cases that got to trial. Of the 199,833 cases stated above, 129,886 were criminal cases, and only 1,567 (1.2%) of the case (criminal cases) went to trial.
How Long Does a Court Case Last in South Dakota?
South Dakota state statutes do not specify how long court cases must last. As a result, how long court cases in South Dakota may last varies depending on the type of court case and its intricacies. For example, whereas an uncontested divorce case may be settled in a matter of days, a contested divorce may take significantly longer (months or years).
How to File a Case in Court in South Dakota
Filing a case in court is the process of submitting legal documents to a court of law to commence legal action. Both types of court cases (civil and criminal cases) in South Dakota begin when one party files a summons and complaint with a court. Who files and the content of the legal paperwork submitted to court are the two key distinctions between the each type of case.
In civil cases, a plaintiff (usually an individual or corporation) submits a civil complaint, summons, and other necessary paperwork to a court clerk's office along with the necessary fee. The complaint informs the court of the case's specifics and the plaintiff's desired outcomes. Meanwhile, the defendant (accused party) is served with the summons informing them that a court case has been filed in which they are party. Depending on the court's services, these documents may be filed electronically, via mail, or in person. It is important to contact the court ahead of time to inquire about how cases are filled through their system.
According to South Dakota Codified Law Chapter 15-5, several factors can be used to identify the appropriate court clerk's office to file a civil case. For example, civil cases to recover real property, partition real property, and foreclosure of a mortgage on real property are heard in the county where the property is located. When filing a civil court case, plaintiffs are generally advised to seek legal counsel from a competent attorney. An attorney can assist a plaintiff in selecting the proper court to file their case in and the documents required for their specific sort of action.
On the other hand, a state prosecutor initiates a criminal case to accuse a person of an offense or crime. The state prosecutor files a complaint to the court clerk's office in a similar fashion to a civil case. However, in these kinds of cases, the complaint would include crucial information about the offense committed and the accusations being brought.
What Does It Mean if a Court Case Was Resolved Before the Trial Date?
A court case being resolved before its trial date may imply that the court granted a judgment that resolved the case before it went to trial. It might also imply that the parties to the dispute were able to come to an agreement without the need for a court ruling. A court can issue the following judgments to resolve a case before going to trial:
- Motion to Dismiss: This type of motion is usually filed in the early stages of a case by the defendant to highlight that the case complaint is legally deficient in some way. Before a dismissal motion can be granted, the court reviews the case's details against applicable laws to determine whether there are any grounds for dismal. For instance, under South Dakota Codified Laws §23A-44-3, a court may grant a motion to dismiss if there is an unnecessary delay in a prosecution.
- Summary judgment: When one party in a case believes that there are indisputable key facts about the case that calls for a ruling to be made in their favor, they file a request for summary judgment. If the judge grants summary judgment, a judgment will be entered in favor of the party who filed the motion for summary judgment.
- Default judgment: When a defendant fails to respond to a summons or file a motion to dismiss the case within a reasonable timeframe, a default judgment may be entered in favor of the plaintiff. Without the necessity for a trial, a case is concluded when a default judgment is rendered. A defendant has 20 days to respond to a summons in accordance with SDCL §15-6-55(b) before a default judgment can be rendered.
